¶ How To Win Against Victoria Spartz
Victoria Spartz has built a record defined by chaos, hypocrisy, and capitulation. She declared herself a "hard no" on the budget reconciliation bill over deficit concerns, then flipped after Trump screamed at her and called her "a fake Republican" — voting for a law projected to strip Medicaid from nearly 12 million people and cut $186 billion from food assistance, threatening benefits for 600,000 Hoosiers.
She criticized Biden's 9-18% lumber tariffs as coming at "the worst time," then voted to protect Trump's far larger 25% tariffs on Canada — hours after saying Congress should "decide which tariffs are good." Those tariffs triggered 900 layoffs at Stellantis plants in Kokomo, in her own district.
The House Ethics Committee investigated her for staff abuse including throwing furniture at aides, she was charged with bringing a gun through airport security, and she called President Zelensky a "moron" and said Ukraine should cede territory to Russia. The Indiana Capital Chronicle summed her up as "simply unreliable, and that's the kindest description available."
¶ HEALTH CARE: LIED ABOUT PREEXISTING CONDITIONS, THEN VOTED TO GUT MEDICAID
Spartz voted against protecting Hoosiers with preexisting conditions as a state senator, then ran ads claiming she "guaranteed protections for Hoosiers with pre-existing conditions." Her plan put 329,300 Hoosiers with preexisting conditions at risk.
Spartz voted against the Inflation Reduction Act, which capped insulin at $35/month for seniors and gave Medicare the power to negotiate drug prices for the first time — lowering costs for Indiana seniors.
The reconciliation law Spartz voted for is projected to cost Indiana $800 million in uncompensated care and threaten 12 hospital closures, with nearly 1.8 million Hoosiers covered by Medicaid or CHIP at risk.
Message: Spartz lied about protecting preexisting conditions, voted against $35 insulin, then caved to Trump and voted to gut Medicaid for nearly 2 million Hoosiers.
¶ AFFORDABILITY: CRITICIZED TARIFFS UNDER BIDEN, THEN PROTECTED BIGGER ONES UNDER TRUMP
Spartz called Biden's 9-18% lumber tariffs "the worst time" to raise prices on consumers — then voted to block Congress from repealing Trump's 25% tariffs on Canada, which are far larger. She said Congress should "decide which tariffs are good, which tariffs are bad" — then hours later voted to prevent Congress from doing exactly that.
The Yale Budget Lab estimates tariffs cost the average household $1,700/year, hitting the poorest families hardest. A Ball State economist said Indiana is among the three most at-risk states because manufacturing accounts for 26% of GDP.
Message: Spartz called tariffs bad under Biden but protected bigger ones under Trump — while Indiana families and factories pay the price.
¶ JOBS AND THE ECONOMY: VOTED AGAINST EVERY MAJOR JOBS BILL, THEN BACKED TARIFFS KILLING JOBS
Spartz voted against the CHIPS Act ($3.87B semiconductor investment in Indiana), the Infrastructure Law ($7.9B for Indiana roads and bridges), and the Inflation Reduction Act ($7.8B in clean energy investment in Indiana) — opposing every bipartisan jobs bill that brought billions to her state.
The tariffs she voted to protect triggered 900 layoffs at three Stellantis plants in Kokomo — in her own district. Indiana farm income is projected to drop over $1 billion in 2026.
Message: Spartz voted against $19.5 billion in investment for Indiana, then backed tariffs that are laying off her own constituents in Kokomo.
¶ CHAOS AND CHARACTER: ETHICS INVESTIGATION, GUN CHARGE, AND STAFF ABUSE
The House Ethics Committee investigated Spartz over allegations of "complete and total rage," with former aides saying she threw furniture and shoes at staffers. She has the highest historical staff turnover of any active House member — 3.5x the House average.
Spartz was charged with a misdemeanor for bringing a gun through TSA at Dulles Airport.
She announced her retirement, then reversed course after nine Republicans had already filed to replace her, then boycotted committees and the GOP caucus after being denied her preferred assignment.
Message: Spartz's own staff can't work for her, her own party can't count on her, and her constituents can't trust her.
¶ Issue Back-Ups
¶ Policies That Hurt Everyday People
Health Care: Lied About Preexisting Conditions, Voted to Gut Medicaid
Affordability: Criticized Biden Tariffs, Protected Trump's Bigger Ones
Jobs: Voted Against Every Major Jobs Bill, Backed Job-Killing Tariffs
Tariff Flip-Flop: Criticized Biden's Tariffs, Protected Trump's Bigger Ones
Ethics Investigation: Staff Abuse, Furniture-Throwing, and "Complete and Total Rage"
Charged With Bringing a Gun Through Airport Security
Unreliable: Retired, Un-Retired, Then Boycotted Her Own Party
Caved to Trump on the Budget Bill She Called a Fiscal Disaster